Kick-off Belgian Public Consultation draft MSP

The Belgian federal government is organising a public consultation about the draft maritime spatial plan (MSP) for the Belgian part of the North Sea for the period 2020-2026 and about the environmental impact report. This consultation runs from the 29th of June until the 28th of September.

The first Belgian MSP dates back to 2014 and will remain in effect until 2020. Philippe De Backer, Minister of the North Sea, has now drawn up the new draft MSP which will be in effect from 2020 until 2026.

The main novelties in comparison to the previous MSP are:

New zones for renewable energy

A new nature conservation zone “Vlakte van de Raan”

Zones for industrial and commercial activities

A coastal protection zone

Optimization of existing zones for defence, sand extraction and dredging.